Hints can always be taken based on which prospects teams are meeting with leading up to the NFL draft. For the Los Angeles Rams, two positions have stood out as somewhat surprising.
Not only did they meet with a handful of running backs at the combine last month, but they’re also showing a clear interest in tight ends. In recent months, they’ve met with several players at the position, both draft prospects and free agents.
The Rams reportedly discussed signing Jordan Reed, who was released by the Redskins this offseason after clearing the league’s concussion protocol. They met with Purdue’s Brycen Hopkins at the Senior Bowl before he put together an impressive performance at the combine. And just this week, they met with two more tight ends in the Pacific Northwest: Oregon’s Jacob Breeland and Oregon State’s Noah Togiai.
It’s obvious the Rams are interested in adding reinforcements to the tight end room, even if not for a high cost in free agency or early in the draft. So what does this all mean for their current group of tight ends? That’s a good question.
Tyler Higbee finished the 2019 season with a stunningly productive stretch of five games, topping 100 yards in four of them. In total, Higbee caught 69 passes for 734 yards and three touchdowns last season.
Gerald Everett ended the year in a very different way. After injuring his knee in Week 11 against the Ravens, Everett didn’t catch a pass the rest of the season. He missed three games and played just four offensive snaps in the final two weeks as the Rams kept him on the sidelines. His final tally? In 13 games, he caught 37 passes for 408 yards and two touchdowns.
Higbee and Everett entered the 2020 offseason in polar opposite ways. Higbee finished on a high note, while Everett’s 2019 season couldn’t have ended much worse. Higbee just signed a four-year extension in September, while Everett has just one year left on his rookie deal.
On the surface, the Rams’ interest in tight ends would seem to put Everett’s future with the team in jeopardy. He’s younger, has a more intriguing skill set and is entering the final year of his contract. And given the way the Rams handled the position at the end of the 2019 season, it’s clear they feel good about Higbee.
But if the Rams are determined to free up cap space, there’s no mistaking which players offers more potential savings by being cut or traded.
If the Rams trade Higbee, they’ll save $6.2 million in cap space this year. If they deal Everett, the savings will only be $1.3 million. The Rams would save the same amount by cutting Everett, but releasing Higbee would only save them $200,000; that’s not really an option.
Could it be possible that the Rams featured Higbee so heavily late in the year to drive up his trade value? Two years ago, the were reportedly trying to get a sixth-rounder for him. Surely, the price has gone up after his breakout season. The Rams could probably get a fifth-rounder for Higbee now, if not a fourth.
As for Everett’s trade value, it’s difficult to gauge. He’s younger and a former second-round pick, but a team will only be getting one season out of him if he doesn’t sign an extension.
The Rams’ interest in tight ends doesn’t mean either player will be traded or cut. It could just be them doing their due diligence ahead of the draft in the event that one of their targets slides on Day 3.
But it’d be silly to ignore their interest in the position, given the number of players they’ve looked at.